The fulfillment by Russia of all items of the Minsk agreements remains the only instrument for de-escalating the conflict in Donbas, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk said during a meeting with Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics, the Ukrainian government press service has reported.

Rinkevics is now paying a visit to Kyiv as a representative of Latvia, which now chairs the Council of the European Union.

Yatseniuk said that "Ukraine and the EU should make joint efforts to ensure that Russia fulfils the Minsk agreements."

Yatseniuk also specified the issues that are priority to Ukraine for interaction with the EU in the near-term perspective: macrofinance assistance, fulfillment of the association agreement, and headway on achieving a visa-free regime with the EU.